JensenLMF

//Learning Motivation and Fun//
 //View// the assignment page //for a more detailed explanation of this project.

In this exercise, you'll collect data from our database of interviews about fun and learning. Use this template and the data to create 5 generalizations for what you observed. Your generalizations should answer the questions//
 * //What makes learning fun and engaging?//
 * //What are the implications for your own teaching and design work//

3) High school students almost universally reported that physical activity was an element in the experiences they called "fun".//** //Bill W, for example described learning beginning archery skills at boy scout camp. Sallie Forth recalled a social studies class in which "we recreated in chicken wire and paper mache the battlefield at Shiloh and spent several class periods reconstructing the events there." All together there were 24 experiences that took place during high school years and all but 1 included physical activity. In most cases (19 out of 24) these activities also required creative or critical thinking.//
 * //Example:

What are your 5 generalizations?

 * 1) Nearly all the interviews that were low in physical activity were usually characterized as being very social and being led by an engaging instructor.** Denise talked about playing a game in her 11th grade English class to study SAT vocabulary. She said “The teacher had a good attitude about it and encouraged a fun atmosphere.” More females (34 out of 54 people) had fun with learning experiences that were low in physical activity.


 * 2) Paying attention to other learners isn’t usually part of a fun, motivating, learning experience.** Five people classified their LMF experience as being one that required them to pay attention to other learners 80% of the time, but 59 people classified theirs as only paying attention to other learners 20% of the time. Holly talked about learning to read music in fourth grade using words like hotdog, ketchup, and motorcycle to keep track of the beat. A big part of why she liked the experience was because everyone in the class was “in this together,” and “we helped each other.” Many of the videos in the 20% category mentioned a positive experience with an instructor and did not mention other learners in the group. Gale said that her wine tasting instructor “really brought in the historical value.”


 * 3) A little teacher humor really can be fun!** 63 people classified their LMF experience as being one that had an instructor who used ‘a little’ humor. Compare that with 31 experiences that classified their instructor as using ‘no humor,’ and 43 whose instructors used humor ‘a lot.’ Al the Dancing Writer said that whenever he teaches a class he “always tries to incorporate humor into whatever (he’s) teaching because I know it really keeps the attention and it increases the ability to retain the information.”


 * 4) Most people who enjoy learning by themselves cite the ability to determine their own learning pace as a reason they liked the experience so much.** Andrew learned how to stick shift car by himself. He said that, “It was so fun because I was happy to do it at my own pace. There was nobody hassling me up to do it faster or slower. It was a great learning experience for myself.” Manny used online videos to teach himself Dreamweaver. He said he liked it because he “focused on the items (he) really needed to learn.”


 * 5) Nearly all of the interviews that were high in competition cited the competitive nature of the experience as a main motivating factor.** When Dan was about 10 years old when he went to a Boy Scout camping trip and took part in a relay race. One of the reasons the race was fun was because “the competition involved trying to beat the other boys in the other troops.” Hugh learned to play Go. His face lighted up when he explained that “It’s kinda fun when you are sweating and you’re all tight and stressed and you wait for your opponent, hoping he doesn’t play the right move.”